Monday, August 12, 2013

Workout Recap and Weekly Goals: Preview of Chicago

Hi all!

I spent this weekend in Chicago with family and friends. It was a great weekend, full of running and food, that I'll be recapping tomorrow.


For today, I'm going to concentrate on the training. I'll be back to Chicago in two months to run 26.2, so it was amazing to get a chance to run around the city that I'll be racing so soon!


Chicago Marathon Training Recap: Week 8

Here were my assigned workouts for this week:
~ 2 strength training workouts (1 Refine Method class, 1 mini workout)
√ 1 easy run (6 miles)
√ 1 speed work session (2 mi w/u, 6x800, 2 mi c/d)
√ 1 long run (16 miles)
x 1 yoga class


Monday: Rest day. Physical therapy appointment at Finish Line Physical Therapy. Focused on hip mobility and loosening my calves and hamstrings, which were crazy tight.


Tuesday: 60 min. Refine Method class with Abby.



Class used suspension straps, wall pulleys, and kettle bells. Partway through the warm-up, I started feeling a slight pain in my left inner thigh. During the first weighted squats, it started hurting a lot more, so I modified the rest of class. That meant a ton of dead lifts and extra butt lifts (the technical term for them). I also favored my right leg which made my right leg and glutes sooooore the next few days.


Wednesday: 6 mile easy run (1:07:46) in Riverside Park with Fiona.



I hadn't seen Fiona in ages so it was great to catch up. She was also sweet enough not to mind an extra slow pace and stretch breaks every mile. I wanted to get in the mileage but was adamant that I wouldn't jeopardize my health, so I kept our pace in the 11's and gently stretched out my sore legs every mile.


Thursday: Rest day. Planned to do speed work but my flight to Chicago was extremely turbulent, leaving me nauseous for hours and with a stomach ache all day.


Friday: 2 mi w/u, 6x800's, 2 mi c/d (1:11) in Chicago's Sculpture Park.



I was kind of dreading this workout since I'd never done 800's before and thought they'd be really difficult. 1/2 mile at a fast pace? Ahh! However, they ended up being a fun way to push myself. Sculpture Park in Chicago has stop lights every 1/2 mile, so I always had a visual endpoint, which really helped me push through the final .1 mile.

w/u - 11:09, 11:04 (1) 4:06, (2) 4:01, (3) 3:59, (4) 4:01, (5) 3:59, (6) 3:58 c/d - 11:49, 12:47 

I got a terrible stitch and had to keep stopping to stretch my side. I chugged a bottle of cold water after I finished the speed work, which was not a good idea. Ouch. Finished with 1 min plank, 15 bird dogs on each side, 1 min R side plank, 1 min L side plank, and 25 push-ups.


Saturday: Almost all weekend, I had a nasty stomach ache, so instead of a full-on strength workout, I did 15 minutes of core and upper body work (push-ups, planks, R and L side planks, and other pilates exercises) and stretched. I couldn't get to a yoga class, so I just tried to stretch at Katie's before bed. 


Sunday: 14 mile long run (3:01:49) along Lake Michigan.



Despite stomach pain and a rain storm for half the run, this was a great long run. My aunt biked alongside me so we got to catch up and chat for three hours. It was so nice of her to keep me company! She acted as my "sherpa," keeping water and fuel in her bike basket. I ran along Lake Michigan, giving me some gorgeous skyline views and allowing for plenty of people watching. It was a fun change of pace from my normal New York routes.

Unfortunately, I was dealing with stomach pain for much of the run, so "easy pace" was a bit slower than usual, and it intensified as the run went on. But by the last mile, I was so excited to hit that personal distance record that I picked up the pace a lot. My body felt really strong throughout this run, so if not for the stomach pain, it would have been a really strong long run.

Splits!
(1) 10:50, (2) 11:10, (3) 10:53, (4) 10:43, (5) 11:02, (6) 10:54, (7) 11:14, (8) 11:12, (9) 10:58, (10) 11:33, (11) 12:15, (12) 12:12, (13) 11:53, (14) 12:00, (15) 12:12, (16) 10:46


This Week's Training Schedule:

My training this week might be switched around a bit due to some unexpected travel, so we'll see how it goes, but I'm committed to getting it all in, despite stomach aches and pains!

• 1 yoga class
• 1 tempo run (60 minutes)
• 1 easy timed run
• 2 strength workouts (1 Uplift class, 1 TBA depending on where I am)
• 1 long run (18 miles!)


How was your weekend? What are your training/fitness goals for this week?

2 comments:

  1. Woah, if I ever get to go to Chicago, I'll make sure to stop by Riverside Park - that picture looks soo beautiful! I live in Germany, so it might take me a while to get there, but...you never know :D

    ReplyDelete
  2. Eighteen miles? You are a rockstar! Let me know if you need a sherpa (on a bike) for long NYC runs. :)

    ReplyDelete